If one visits Italy on the days around the 15th of August, you could be forgiven for assuming that it was a nation on the move complete with tailbacks of refugees fleeing their homes …. however – you would be wrong. The Ferragosto, – the 15th August – is the title day of an Italian […]

The pagan, pre-Christian origins of the Focara, and its association with fire and the ending of winter have been mainly lost with the passage of time, but today the Festival in the town of Novoli marks a celebration of St Anthony Abbot (Sant’Antonio Abate) on 17th January. The Bishop of the time in 1664, declaring […]

The three day Easter festival and the procession of the Madonna del Galeano is celebrated each year in the town of Torchiarolo over Easter Sunday, Easter Monday and the Tuesday after. The origins of the festival date back to the days of the 16th century, when a local farmer unearthed an icon of the Virgin […]

The Carnival of Putignano is one of the oldest in Europe having been celebrated annually since the year 1394, and, commencing from 26th December until its end on Shrove Tuesday it is certainly the longest. Its origin dates to when the Knights of St John took the decision to transfer the relics of St Stephen […]

The Festa di Santa Domenica – or the Festival of Light and illumination, as it is now known, is one of Europes oldest and most long standing celebrations, having its origins millennia ago in Roman times during the reign of the Emperor Diocletian. Saint Domenica, born 287 AD , was originally named Kyriaki and was […]

The town of Oria in the province of Taranto, Puglia holds a two day medieval re-enactment “The Tournament of the Districts” each year on the second weekend of August. This annual event has its origins in history when in 1225 The Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick Barbarossa took residence in Oria whilst awaiting the arrival of […]